Construction is not only one of the largest industries in the world, but also one of the most dangerous in terms of deaths and injuries suffered by workers. In the U.S. alone, over twenty percent of all on-the-job deaths occur in the construction industry. Moreover, about one third of these deaths are the result of falling. As a result, many laws and regulations have been created in the U.S. as requiring construction companies to install fall protection for their workers.
For example, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), a U.S. government agency, requires installation of safety railing or other fall arresting equipment near the edges of open floors. Many construction sites choose the railing option.
The present inventor has recognized that many of the railing options available to construction companies suffer from at least three problems. First, many construction companies hire professional carpenters to build temporary railing structures out of new lumber and discard them in land fills at the end of the job. This is not only time consuming, but also relatively expensive and wasteful, since the fabrication process and full railing expense is incurred repeatedly from project to project. Moreover, the wooden railing structures are typically not tested for compliance with OSHA fall protection requirements, and therefore may be inadequate, exposing workers to injury and the companies that use them to potential fines.
Second, some companies use metal railing systems that can be reused from project to project, avoiding the expense of purchasing railings for every new project, but still incurring significant installation expense. For example, many companies using tubular railing systems that require bolting vertical posts or stanchions to a concrete floor using as four or more anchor bolts, with each anchor bolt requiring its own separate drilling and setting steps. This is not only expensive in terms of the labor and time, but also potentially risky as some concrete floors have internal structures that could be damage if the anchor holes are positioned incorrectly. Moreover, removing the railing system requires removing the nuts and the anchor bolts, consuming more labor and time. Still other railings systems provide long vertical tie down bolts that are hidden within the vertical tubes of the railings, not only requiring turning of the bolts to fasten the rails to their bases, but also requiring workers to physically contact the rail to confirm fastening.
Third, the present inventor recognized that conventional metal rail systems, even though reusable, are cumbersome to store and move from project to project. In particular, the rails are typically laid flat and stored on pallets in a ground-level staging area that takes up space on the construction site. The rails and mounting hardware are then lifted separately using cranes and forklifts to work areas, not only taking valuable crane and forklift time, but also subjecting the railing to damage during in the process. After being dropped in the work area, the mounting hardware and rails are then moved separately for installation. The process is reversed during de-installation, with the mounting hardware subject to loss and the rails again subject to damage as they're bundled and moved via crane or forklift to ground level for storage on the pallets.
Accordingly, the present inventor has recognized a need for a better way to provide safety railing.